The AGF "All things acoustic archtop" thread

[Taylorplayer]

Originally Posted by riovine

Man, that Walker is jaw dropping

Yes, it really is....

Hmm - If I sold all of them, could I afford one like that? Would I still be around when the delivery time finally came?

[drive-south]

Originally Posted by backdrifter

There aren't a whole lot of threads dedicated to acoustic archtops around here. This is understandable, since flat tops are quite a bit more common these days (and don't get me wrong, I love flat tops). But, I think it would be cool to have a master thread for acoustic archtop lovers. I envision a thread where people can and do post all things related to archtops - photos of their own, photos of "dream guitars", videos of people playing acoustic archtops, etc.

So, I'll start. I've owned a lot of archtops, but these are the only ones that I would characterize as true acoustic archtops.

My first ever, and Eastman AR904. Lovely instrument, and I'm still not sure why I sold it (that seems to be the case for me a lot - typically due to GAS-induced infatuation over some other instrument):





Next came the Bourgeois LC-4. This guitar was amazingly beautiful and sounded fantastic, but for some reason I never could mesh with the neck, which seemed a bit too big (wide, across the fretboard) to me:





Next came a wonderful 1933 Gibson L7. This was the 16" Loar body style and varied from an early 16" L5 only by the neck material (mahogany), the less figured back and sides, and the decorative appointments. It had been refinished some time ago but looked brand new. And played amazingly. It was so, so light, and very, very responsive. I've bought and sold many guitars, and this is one of the few I now regret parting with:





This is my current archtop - a Benedetto Frank Vignola Standard. I had been looking for one for quite some time, and just recently found a collector selling one on Gbase. I'm really enjoying it, though sadly, it hasn't made me sound or play like Frank







So there, hopefully that will help kick this thread off. Feel free to share anything you've got - pictures, videos, stories, anecdotes... as long as they have to do with acoustic archtops!

The very first Eastman guitar I encountered was a 904 like your's with sunburst finish. It was for sale at the Music Emporium. Played like a dream. I still wish I took it home with me. If I recall, the 904 I played had a pick guard.

[Bluemonk]

Originally Posted by mr. beaumont

Didn't think there were too many jazzers around here...what do you guys play on your archies? They're not just for jazz, that's for sure.

Jazzer here, as you might guess by my Username. I love good music of all stripes though, so there are a lot of influences that enter into my playing.

[surfoxy]

Originally Posted by Petespix

Thanks Surfoxy.

The Zenith is somewhat of a humble archtop in appearance compared to some of the beauties pictured in this thread. However it is a real nice guitar to play with low action, great sound and bought at a great price. Overall it's in very good condition cosmetically with the exception of the back where there is one small area where the finish flaked off exposing the walnut.

Peter

Loved your video with your giggling dancers.

Thanks!

And I just love the classic shape of that guitar. Somehow the proportions are just right.

[Anand00028]

The Zenith is the most comfortable archtop I have mainly because the upper body width seems just right.Love the vintage woody tone too.
To answer Jeff's question, the archtops are definitely part of my journey (or should I say attempt) into jazz!

[Archtop Guy]

Most of my friends and music colleagues think of me as the jazz man, or sometimes the man of a thousand chords, but I don't actually think of myself that way. I am just a musician who loves lots of kinds of music, and I like to bust the stereotypes with an occasional country, folk, or blues tune.

OTOH, jazz is so stimulating and exciting, I guess I do work on it quite a bit!

Here's my Trenier Excel, x-braced modern style archtop in the spirit of D'Aquisto, but certainly no copy. It's Bryant's work and inspiration through and through.

[blue-wily-fox]

Here is a 1923 L-2, and a 1947 L-7, I'm a big fan of the round hole archtop!



a 1940's Kay all mahogany



1934 Washburn 5250



1933 Martin R-18

[Anand00028]

Love that Washburn.
Now there's one I would call a hybrid!

[backdrifter]

I was going through my photos of guitars past and I just found more/better photos of the 1933 L-7 I owned. Sigh... why did I let this one go? Suddenly kicking myself. In fact, I even emailed the new owner to see if he's bored with it yet!











Pretty easy on the eyes for a 79 year old, wasn't she?

[Jtan]

Wow, some real eye candy here!

Not meaning to hijack this thread, but I'm just wondering has anyone here tried using a Tonerite on an archtop? If it works for flat tops, it should also work for archtops, no?

[backdrifter]

Originally Posted by Jtan

Wow, some real eye candy here!

Not meaning to hijack this thread, but I'm just wondering has anyone here tried using a Tonerite on an archtop? If it works for flat tops, it should also work for archtops, no?

I haven't, but would like to. I may need to break down and buy a used one.

There is a Tonerite ad in which Bob Benedetto says, "The ToneRite is amazing! Within five days of using my ToneRite the voice of my Cremona magically matured."

That's enough for me to try it!

[TimberlineGuy]

Originally Posted by Jtan

Wow, some real eye candy here!

Not meaning to hijack this thread, but I'm just wondering has anyone here tried using a Tonerite on an archtop? If it works for flat tops, it should also work for archtops, no?

Right on their homepage

[IanS]

I play this every day:



It's a wonderful guitar. Made by R.S. Williams & Sons. Circa 1944. I love the built-in reverb and the great ergonomics. Only thing I'd like to do is figure out a way to lower the action. There appears to be no trussrod.

(Edit: I remembered the name by accident. I was checking out guitars on Top Shelf Music's site, and saw the listing for the Hensel Artist 00, where he says it was made by R.S. Williams & Sons. It is a great guitar.)

[mr. beaumont]

Try sanding down the bridge a bit...

I can't tell from the pic, is it a one piece bridge or two...if it's two, it's an easy job.

I have a special place in my heart for the old american "cheapo" archtops. More mojo than just about anything to me...

Man, this is possibly the best thread for pics ever.

[backdrifter]

It's Friday and I need an archtop fix (since my Benedetto is still out of commission, and probably for another week or two ).

I've often dreamed about what I would get if I could have only one archtop, and price was not an issue. Of course the names like Monteleone, D'Aquisto, and D'Angelico immediately come to mind. My answer changes on a daily basis, but right now I'm leaning towards a Benedetto Sinfonietta. Here are a few that I like:

Flamed maple with roswood insert:





Beautiful myrtle burl:





And an amazingly unique guitar - Il Teredo. The top is made from a piece of wood that was attacked by the Teredo worm. The "sound holes" are burrows from where the worms ate the wood. How cool is that!





This is probably the one that I would ask Bob to copy if I ever found myself with a huge chunk of change that I had to spend on a guitar. Look at that walnut!